Description
Costs ruling in a successful claim for damages pursuant to s. 47A,
Competition Act 1998 (inserted by
s. 18, Enterprise Act 2002) and an unsuccessful claim for exemplary damages.
Held: A party is not required to succeed on every point at issue before a claim can be regarded as a success (
HLB Kidsons (A Firm) v Lloyds Underwriters [2007] EWHC 2699 (Comm)). If the defendant fails to made a sufficient without prejudice offer at the first opportunity, particularly where the infringement has been established and the only issues remaining are those of causation and quantum, it cannot expect to secure costs protection (
Fox v Foundation Piling Limited [2011] EWCA Civ 790 analogous). As a matter of principle, an ATE insurance premium is recoverable. The amount recoverable depends on the circumstances of the case.
In the present case, the claimant clearly won its compensatory claims and was entitled to its costs. The defendant was ordered to pay 85 per cent, including the ATE insurance premium, reflecting the claimant's lack of success on the exemplary damages claim. The defendant's conduct justified that no order as to its costs for defending the claim be made.
